The Raven
by iNvIsIbLe GiRl 12
Summary: After receiving ECT, Diana doesn't even know who her son is anymore. Gabe is tired of going unrecognized and leaves his sheltered life in the Goodman household. But what happens when he runs into Raven, a dead girl with a mysterious past? ON HIATUS!
1. Chapter 1

**A/N: Ok! New Story! Awww…it's about time I wrote a Gabe fic. GABE FINDS A GIRL! Thanks DD for the wonderful idea! You're are the best editor EVER! Ok! So…this chapter's a little bland. It's just background information that no one cares about…Poor Gabe…*gives Gabe a hug***

**Reviews?**

**Disclaimer: I don't own N2N….or Gabey. Poor Gabe…Man, I need sleep…*pushes Henry aside and decides to sleep on Gabe's shoulder this time***

It's just another day…Probably about the fiftieth time I've repeated that to myself this morning. Ok, so I'm not the thriving, charming guy I once was anymore. A little more laid back, I guess is how you could describe it.

You see, I'm dead. Yes, now you're all confused, aren't you? Well, no need to be.

I can see them, my family, I mean. I can see and hear everything they do. But do they notice me? No. Well, except for mom, but that's another story. They thought she was crazy for noticing me, her own son…No one ever even knows that I'm here…that is, of course, until I met Raven.

* * *

I woke up that morning feeling weaker than normal. I figured that it was probably because I only slept like 5 hours…But as soon as I got up, I shakily fell back onto my bed. Now that I was awake I recalled it. I had no recollection of the past two weeks…I was blank.

"Shit…" I whispered to myself. Now I remembered. It was the damn ECT…the damn treatment. It was like literally draining the fricken' life out of me.

Supporting myself the whole way, I quickly rushed down stairs, into the kitchen where my mother sat, slightly confused, at the table. "Mom…"

She didn't answer. "Mom, it's me. What's going on?"

She jumped a little, obviously able to hear me. But still she didn't notice me like she did before. Was something wrong? Was she ok? Of course, leave it to the damn doctor to mess up her life.

She sat there for a half hour, staring at pictures and keepsakes, piled in a little box in front of her. Picture by picture she pulled out seemed to be of Natalie, Natalie, her and my father, a few newspaper articles, and, oh. More Natalie. But in the corner of my eye, I spotted another small box, hidden underneath the table. Slowly bending down and grabbing it, I flipped through the many pictures. They were of me.

One caught my attention especially. There were my parents, both brightly smiling. And there I was, half-asleep in my mother's arms. It's hard to believe that they were actually both happy once. It seems like now all I see is the grief.

Digging deeper into the box, I pulled out a smaller, wooden one. It was coated in a shiny finish and had my name engraved on it. I opened it only to hear a hauntingly familiar tune slowly snake its way out. Oh, God…I remember. My music box.

I stared quietly at it as I closed it shut. It hurt to look at it. All those memories, even though I was like two…they haunt me. I want to be alive. I want to feel. I want to be normal.

I put the music box next to my mother. Well, they won this time. Maybe I should just take some time off, you know, relax a bit. So I quietly whispered a stifled "goodbye" and left.

**A/N: So…on to the next chapter shall we? Reviews?**


	2. Chapter 2

**A/N: AHHHHH! RAVEN! Ok, so this is the awesome part! I figured that Gabe needed a dead friend…my original idea was April from RENT, but I didn't want a crossover. So I created Raven: she's a punk and she's awesome. Any reviews please?**

**Disclaimer: I don't own Next to Normal. But I DO own Raven. NO ONE TAKE HER FROM ME! She is my work of genius!**

I was alone. I've never really been alone before. I've never really been outside of my house before. The world outside waited for me with open arms. So I took advantage of my opportunity.

It was early morning. The sun was just about rising. The skyline of the city was illuminated by the bright light. I stared at it, awestruck. It held my attention until I heard a loud clang.

My head flew away from the sunrise and I found myself staring at a dark alleyway. The noise had come from down there. Slowly, I walked over. A huge pile of tin garbage cans were laid out underneath a rather short brick wall. The pile began to rustle as I rushed over to them.

And before my eyes, from out of the pile, a girl popped her head out. She shook her head as she stood up, brushing herself off. She had long black hair that blew in the breeze, tied up into a red and black bandanna. She wore only a tank top and a short skirt, covered in ripped fishnets everywhere. Miscellaneous body piercings and jewelry hung from her everywhere you could think of. And to top it all off, she had a decent sized red heart with an arrow through it tattooed onto her left arm.

You could say she's a punk. She sure looked like one…But to me, she was more than a punk. She was beautiful.

I tried to talk to her, only remembering that she'd never hear me.

"Well, thanks for watching me plummet into a pile of trash." She said rather sarcastically. "What's the matter? Never saw another person before?"

I just stared blankly. Nothing came out of my mouth, and if it did, it would've been word vomit.

"You can see me?" That's all I said. God, Gabe, why are you so stupid?

"Yeah…and you can see me?" The girl asked.

"Well, yeah, I can see you, I mean, you're…you're alive."

The girl threw back her head and laughed. "You might wanna reconsider that statement…"

"You mean…you're dead too?"

She nodded, trying to neatly put the trash can back in their places.

"How'd you fall?" I asked her. God, it sounded like a terrible pick-up line…

She smirked and explained. "I was up there." She referenced the brick wall. "I lost my balance and I fell."

"What were you doing up there?"

"Watching the sunrise. Like I do every morning. I guess you're just bad luck, then."

I shrugged. What should I do now? Man, I had the weirdest feeling…She was pretty. She was _really_ pretty. Without thinking, I went over and helped her to get cleaned up. I began to brush off the dirt from her shoulder, only to find myself staring at her with my hand just resting on it.

She gave me a stare that said, 'don't touch me, you asshole.' But yet, she never said anything.

"Well, now that we've become…um…acquainted," she said, finally pulling away from me. "I'm Raven."

"Raven…" The name sounded beautiful coming from her lips. "Oh. I'm Gabe."

She grabbed my hand, even though I didn't offer it to her, and shook it like we were best friends from high school or something.

"So what brings you around this part of town?" She asked me, continuing to walk out of the alley.

"Oh…well, I, um…"

"What's the matter? Cat got your tongue?"

"No…I just…I mean…" Uh-oh. Here comes the hormones…

She giggled sending shivers down my spine. "Oh, I get it. You're nervous."

"No! No I'm not!" What I meant to say was _Yeah. How'd you guess?_

"You wouldn't be the first guy to fall head over heals for me…"

"But, I'm not falling for you. I mean, that came out all wrong, but-!"

She put her finger against my lips and gestured me to follow her. And…I did.

Score now is Teenage Boy Hormones: 2 Common Sense :0 .

**A/N: Haahahaha….poor Gabe is having an internal conflict…Slight warning. The next chapter is kind of touching up on some sensitive subject matter. Reviews?**


	3. Chapter 3

**A/N: Ok! So this one is what I get for listening to "The Dark I know Well" over and over again…It's a bit sensitive, touches up on abuse and suicide. Please be kind! **

**Disclaimer: I don't own Next to Normal, but I _do_ own Raven! C'mere Rae! *Hugs Raven* POOR RAVEN!**

The sun was up and life had begun to continue in the city. I had no idea where I was going, but I followed Raven like a lost puppy dog. As we walked further we found ourselves in front of a building. The sign read clearly _Hemingway High School._ Raven had stopped and began to stare curiously at the school.

I accidentally ran into her, not prepared for the sudden stop. Her eyes, as I could see, were fixed on a young couple. As I looked closer I realized that it was my sister, Natalie, and her boyfriend, Henry.

Raven's brownish-black eyes carefully followed them. She still stood there, silent, watching the two fight. Who knows what it was about, but it had to be something stupid.

"Um…any reason why you're taking such a particular interest in them?" I asked.

She snapped back into reality. "You know them?"

"She's my sister…"

"Oh…that's…that's great…"

I could tell something was on her mind. The way she looked at them, with such a longing. Maybe she felt the way I did too. Maybe all she wanted was to be noticed, to be alive.

* * *

The day went on. Raven showed me the city, the life I never lived. Before long, night had fallen. _I'm not going back…_I told myself. _Why would I go back to where they don't even want me?_

She led me back into the alleyway that we found this morning. She slid down the brick wall and reclined against it. A rustling noise startled me as I turned to see what it was. A little black cat had found its way to us. It mewed as soon as it saw Raven, then, slowly walking towards her, caressed her arm with its head.

She smiled and pet it, but soon after, stared at me.

"So why are you here?" She asked.

I shrugged. "It's kind of a long story…"

"I have time."

"You know I'm dead. Well, my mother…she can still see me, hear me. Dad thought it was a bad thing. Got her numerous treatments…she just came home the other day from the latest one…ECT. She couldn't see me. She wouldn't notice me. So I ran away…"

She just continued to stare at me like I was some sort of freak.

"The same thing happened with me…It was my brother, though. I didn't wanna lose him and he wouldn't let me go…They gave him ECT too…He killed himself later…I still haven't found him…"

She sounded like she had it worse than me. Then that weird feeling crept up again…Teenage hormones were saying wrap your arm around her, show her you care. But Common Sense was saying give her a moment.

So what did I do? Well, a few seconds later, I found my arm around her shoulder.

Score is 3-0.

"How did you die?" She asked me, curiously after a moment of silence.

"I was sick, I guess." I tried to remember…I was so young… "I wasn't even two yet. Mom wasn't ready to lose me. That's why she's depressed."

She nodded, signaling that she understood my point of view.

"What about you? What took the life of a pretty girl like you?" Damn. I let it slip.

She didn't seem to notice. She just stared blankly at the cat, which had taken a seat next to her.

"Suicide."

"You killed yourself?" I asked, somewhat horrified, somewhat curious.

"I had to. It was the only way out."

"What happened?"

She shook her head, refusing to tell me.

"Rae, you know you can tell me." Did I just seriously call her _Rae?_ "I won't judge you. I'm your friend."

She gave me a look of pity, then she continued, stumbling over the rough parts.

"When I was little, my parents got a divorce. Every other weekend I'd spend with my dad. It all started one night when I was with him. He…he…"

"He what?"

She sighed and said, "He abused me. In every way you could think of."

"He took advantage of you like that?" Hmmm…Now I think that I'd rather be dead anyway…

"Mm-hmm. Then one day, he was gone. I never saw him again. I think he was arrested for drunk driving or something."

"No one knew?"

"No. When I got older, I went to high school like everyone else. All the girls had boyfriends, but I refused to have one."

"Why? Do you have relationship problems?"

She glared at me. "No. I have trust issues. There was this one boy in my class. He would stare at me everyday and smile and wave when I walked past. I would never pay attention to him. I was at senior prom. I went alone. I decided to go walk around the campus, but then I ran into the boy and his friends. They were drunk."

"Uh-oh. I know where this is going…"

"He corned me…I had nowhere to go, to run. I was paralyzed with fear. He kissed me a few times and I kicked him, you know, where it hurts."

I knew right away what she meant. Oww…poor bastard…

"I ran into the woods that were right on the campus, trying to hide from him. I remembered how violated and terrified I felt with my father. I didn't want to go through it again…I remembered that I had a revolver in my purse."

"Why?"

"My brother was a cop. He was chaperoning the dance. He knew what I went trough with my father and with this boy, so he told me to stay safe. I pulled out the gun and shot myself."

She seemed so solemn, so fragile now that she told me. Her tough, superior image was destroyed. My hand was clasped around hers.

"I'm sorry."

She smiled. "Me too."

I paused for a moment then said all to quickly, "Rae, I think I love you."

She stared at me curiously, clearly frightened after telling her story.

"Gabe, I-I don't know what to say…"

"Don't say anything. I just…I love you."

She shook her head now. "No…this'll never work…"

"You don't have to worry. I'll protect you. I won't let anything happen to you. I'm here…"

Tears were pouring down her face now. "I don't want you to turn out like him…"

"I won't…I will never…I promise I'll keep you safe, Rae."

I embraced her tightly. She hid her head on my shoulder, tears flowing like a river. "Ok. Fine. But please…don't…"

"I know. I won't, Raven, I won't…"

She lightened up a little, accepting my embrace. Her head rested on my shoulder as I wrapped both my arms around her. Well, it's Hormones: 3 Common Sense:1. I knew that I loved her, from the moment I saw her. But, could we last?

**A/N: This is all I have for now. I'm gonna write more, I wanna do like a Natalie/Henry parallel, but do you think that would be too weird? Tell me what you think. REVIEW!**


	4. Chapter 4

**A/N: Before I start can I just say…I'M GONNA SEE NEXT TO NORMAL!!!!!!!! AAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! NEW YORK, HERE I COME! Thank you to all my relatives who pitched in to the "Send Me to New York Fund." I CAN'T WAIT!!!!! February can't come any sooner…**

**Anyway…this part's from Raven's perspective…if you didn't read chapter 3 this will make no sense! Lol…Enjoy!**

**Disclaimer: YAYAYAYAYAYAYAYAYAY! I'm soooooo happy! I don't own N2N, but I'm gonna see it which is almost as fun!**

*Raven*

My night was anything but silent. He told me he loved me…Just like _he_ did…

My thoughts raced across my mind. Did he mean it? Did he really love me? Or was he just trying to get into my pants like every other guy I know? Except my brother. He was the only decent guy I've ever known. He respected me for the living person that I am…or was, rather.

I woke up, my chest heaving like it was the end of the world. I almost forgot where I was, until I attempted to get up. I was restricted by a pair of huge, muscular arms, clinging onto me in an embrace. I hurriedly looked over to see who they belonged to. It was Gabe.

He was lying there, peacefully, holding me in his arms. I tried to tug away, but it was hopeless. I figured that I'd have to get used to it anyway. I relaxed myself a bit and decided to examine him.

The expression that his face wore was so calm, so gentle, that it almost made me feel welcomed in his embrace. His sandy-brown hair stood up all over, giving him the look of a punk. He wasn't a punk. That was me. He was charming, he seemed like a jock. I wondered of anyone could see us. A punk and jock all tangled in each other's arms.

I guess I sort of liked this…It wasn't as bad as I thought it would be, being in love, I mean. He didn't try to take advantage of me. He just let me be…

I scooted a bit closer to him, his lips were now in front of mine. I ran my hands across his arms. I gathered my courage and I leaned forward a little and kissed him. Yes. I, Raven, kissed him.

He stirred a little, which got me a bit cautious. His mouth began to move as well…Thankfully, though, he was just waking up. I knew I couldn't see, but his eyes fluttered open, almost surprised to see me kissing him. He sort of pulled away from me after a while.

"Well…um, good morning…"

I giggled uncomfortably. Ooooh, why am I so stupid? It's obvious that he wasn't expecting that…I blushed a bright red before finally composing myself.

"So, uh, what was that?" He asked, sitting up against the wall.

"Oh…um, nothing…"

"Uh-huh…" He smiled slyly and teased me. "Admit it. You like me."

"No I don't!" I was giggling madly, right away telling him that I was trying to cover up my real feelings.

"It's ok to be in love, Rae…"

I slightly nodded. Yeah…I guess it was ok…I mean, after all I've been through you'd think that I'd lighten up a bit with him, but I couldn't….

* * *

I decided to take a little walk by myself. I had to contemplate what the hell was going on with my life…or death…whatever…I rounded the corner, there was the school we had found yesterday. It was the same place where I died….that was my school…

The girl, Gabe's sister, was nowhere to be seen. The same boy was there, looking for her in the parking lot. He looked concerned as he walked into the building. I couldn't take my eyes off of the building. I wonder if she did the same thing as me…I wonder if she's…dead…

I turned to walk away when I felt a hand grasp my shoulder. Naturally, I screamed, not knowing what else to do. The man, to whom the hand belonged, shushed me and threw his hand over my mouth. I kicked him, trying to free myself, until he threw me in front of him and looked me in the eyes.

"Raven, it's me."

My eyes widened like mad. I felt like I stopped breathing.

"_Jonathan?!"_

He was no creep. He was my brother.

**A/N: More to come! Sorry…I'm not done with the next chapter yet…Back to Gabe though…Reviews?**


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